Summary Box: Pope joins tweeting masses

CHURCH CHIRPS: Benedict XVI, a pope known for hefty volumes of theology, is now trying brevity — spreading the faith through his own Twitter account. The pontiff will tweet in eight languages using the handle (at)Pontifex.

FAITHFUL FOLLOWERS: Within hours of the Vatican's announcement, Benedict had 100,000 followers on the English version alone. British bookmakers say he's odds-on to get 1 million followers by the end of the year.

MODERN MISSION: The pope sent his first tweet last year from a Vatican account to launch its news information portal, part of efforts to increase the church's presence in social media.